How to upgrade Windows Phone 8.1 to Windows 10 Mobile

At last after a long wait, from today Microsoft has started rolling out Windows 10 Mobile to some selected Windows Phone 8.1 devices. In this post we will see how to upgrade Windows Phone 8.1 to Windows 10 Mobile, as the process is not like just checking for updates.

Since over a year, Microsoft has been providing Preview builds to those who opted to install on their devices in the Insider Preview program. But most of the average phone user who don’t bother about trying out the Preview builds can now check if this upgrade rollout supports their device. Actually you will have to get an app to check this and upgrade to Windows 10 Mobile. This app is similar to ‘Get Windows 10’ app for PCs and checks eligibility of your device and enables the upgrade. So let us check step-by-step how to upgrade your Windows Phone 8.1 device to Windows 10 Mobile.

Upgrade Windows Phone 8.1 to Windows 10 Mobile

Microsoft has released a list of Windows Phone 8.1 devices that are supported for the upgrade. So first, one should check this if your device is included in the list. The current list of Windows Phone 8.1 devices that can upgrade to Windows 10 includes: Lumia 1520, 930, 640, 640XL, 730, 735, 830, 532, 535, 540, 635 1GB, 636 1GB, 638 1GB, 430, 435, BLU Win HD w510u, BLU Win HD LTE x150q, MCJ Madosma Q501 If your device is in the list, proceed to next step.

The Windows 10 Mobile Upgrade Advisor app helps you find out if your Windows Phone 8.1 phone is eligible to install the upgrade to Windows 10 Mobile. It can also help free up space on your phone so you’re ready to install the upgrade. When you open the app, it checks your phone and lets you know if it’s eligible to install the upgrade, if an update is required before you can install the upgrade, or if your phone can’t be upgraded. If your phone is eligible to install the upgrade, you may need to free up some space to get it. The app will recommend files, such as videos or photos, which you can temporarily move to OneDrive or an SD card, if you have one installed. Accept the recommendations, or change which files you want to move. You can even delete some files, if you want. If you move files to OneDrive, you need to use this app to restore files back to your phone after Windows 10 Mobile is installed.

After installing the, open the Upgrade Advisor app and follow the instructions.

Open the Upgrade Advisor app, click on the ‘next’ and it will start checking and once the check is complete, it will show the screen 3 (below) if your phone is ready and supports and Windows 10 upgrade is available to install on your phone. Else it will show , Your Phone is not supported for the upgrade to Windows 10. (Screen 4). Press ‘done’.

If your Phone supports and it shows Windows 10 upgrade is available to install on your phone, then go to Settings > Phone Update to download and install Windows 10.

Please note that the download process may take a while as its an around 1.4 GB or more download so a Wi-Fi internet connection is required to download and install the upgrade.

Once the process is complete, you may have to reboot the phone. Once the upgrade is done, enjoy the new much improved Windows 10 Mobile. The version it gets upgraded to is 10.0.10586.164. Please check that if it gets updated 10586.164 else repeat to check for updates again.

The availability of Windows 10 Mobile as an upgrade for existing Windows Phone 8.1 devices will vary by device manufacturer, device model, country or region, mobile operator or service provider, hardware limitations, and other factors.

Microsoft Lumia Support has also released a video showing how to upgrade to Windows 10 Mobile.

The author has been a Microsoft MVP awardee in various Windows categories (2006-2016) and currently a Windows Insider MVP. A Technology Enthusiast, interested in anything technical and is committed to Microsoft technologies and products. He is actively associated with various Microsoft online communities, forums, Newsgroups and has been actively involved in Beta testing various Microsoft products and bug submissions.

Blu HD 510u: I did an update from win 8.1 to win 10 and had issues: battery life, rebooting by itself, loss of keyboard, calendar stopped syncing with my PC and account, had to go to MS store and have it set back to factory settings.

I have the BLU Win HD LTE too and am on Windows Mobile 10. Had two smaller Upgrades since then too and am currently on Version 1607, OS Build 10.0.14393.189. I haven’t faced any issues during any of the 3 upgrades!